Hyōgo · Kinosaki Onsen
Yanagi-yu (Kinosaki public bath)
柳湯（城崎温泉 外湯）
The smallest and hottest of the seven baths — a little wooden bathhouse on the willow-lined canal, where you soak shoulder to shoulder with locals. Opens at 3 pm.
- Price (adult)
- ¥800
- Hours
- 15:00–23:00 (last entry 22:30)
- Closed
- Thu
- Access
- 7 min walk from JR Kinosaki-Onsen Station
- Water type
- Simple spring
- Tattoos
- Allowed
- Admission
- Adults ¥800 / children (3 to elementary) ¥400. “Yumepa” day pass ¥1,500 / ¥750 for unlimited entry to all seven baths (sold at any bath). Guests of member ryokan bathe free from check-in to check-out with a barcode pass
- Water
- Sodium-calcium-chloride hot spring, ~42 °C, centrally distributed to all seven baths. Neuralgia, muscle pain, bruises, chronic digestive complaints, piles, fatigue
- Highlights
- Smallest and reputedly hottest of the seven; named for a spring that rose beneath a willow transplanted from China’s West Lake. Free foot bath in front. Opens at 15:00
- Amenities
- Shampoo and body soap provided; towels sold (bring from your ryokan). ¥100 refundable lockers. Tattoos are officially welcome in Kinosaki’s public baths
- Phone
- 0796-32-2097
- Official site
- kinosaki-spa.gr.jp/about/spa ↗
- Open in Google Maps
- Google Maps ↗
Essentials
Stay in this onsen town
Compare and book stays in Kinosaki Onsen. Day bathing itself needs no booking.
Opens partner booking site (affiliate)
Why go
- Hottest bath in town — a connoisseur's pick
- Best location on the willow canal
- Perfect finish to an evening yukata stroll
Smallest, hottest — the bath of fertility and safe birth
Yanagi-yu (“willow bath”) is named for a spring that welled up beneath a willow transplanted from China’s scenic West Lake. The smallest of the seven, its tub fills with just a few bathers, but the intimate wooden building and hot water make it a favourite with onsen lovers. It is the bath of fertility and safe childbirth, and a free foot bath out front lets you pause even without bathing. Opens at 15:00 — slot it into an evening stroll.
Tips & cautions
- Last entry 30 min before closing.
- The seven baths stagger their weekly closures (Kono-yu Tue, Mandara-yu Wed, Gosho-no-yu Thu, Ichi-no-yu Wed, Yanagi-yu Thu, Jizo-yu Mon, Sato-no-yu Mon), so 5–6 are always open.
- The tourist association site shows live crowding for each bath.
- Strolling bath to bath in yukata and geta is the Kinosaki way; ryokan guests get a free pass with their yukata.
- Since Nov 2023 facilities using natural spring water display an official “Kinosaki natural onsen” certificate.
Getting there
About 8 min on foot from JR Kinosaki-Onsen Station (Yushima 647), on the south bank of the Otani river between Ichi-no-yu and Mandara-yu.
Before you go
- Payment is usually by ticket machine in cash — bring coins.
- Last entry is 30–60 minutes before closing.
Features
Baths
Only here
Price
Mood & scenery
Rules & private
Convenience
Amenities
✔ Verified operating: 2026-09 城崎温泉観光協会公式
Prices and hours change. Check official sources before visiting.
More in this area
Gosho-no-Yu (Kinosaki outer bath)
The most popular of Kinosaki's seven public baths. In a building modeled on the Kyoto Imperial Palace, a waterfall rotenburo faces the hillside and a glass-roofed 'sky bath' sits indoors, all renovated in 2020. Overnight guests get free entry with the 'Yumepa' pass, so evenings are busy with yukata-clad bathers — go at 7 am when it opens.
Kin-no-Yu
The public bathhouse of Arima, one of Japan's three oldest hot springs. For ¥800 you can soak in the 'kinsen' — iron- and salt-rich water that turns rusty brown on contact with air, in pools at 42°C and 44°C. Under an hour by train from Kobe or Osaka, so an easy day trip. Free foot bath and drinking fountain outside. No tattoos.
Ichi-no-Yu (Kinosaki outer bath)
Kinosaki's flagship outer bath, praised as 'the best under heaven' by an Edo-period physician. Its cave bath carved into rock is the draw; the kabuki-theatre-style building is the town's landmark.